answering the allegation that
some later hanafis tampered
With a narration in the
mustadrak al hakim
regarding salatul wltr
Praise be to Allah that is due from all grateful believers, a fullness of
praise for all his favours: a praise that is abundantly sincere and
blessed. May the blessings of Allah be upon our beloved Master
Muhammad, the chosen one, the Aposde of mercy and the seal of all
Prophets (peace and blessings of Allah be upon them all); and upon his
descendants who are upright and pure: a blessing lasting to the Day of
Judgment, like the blessing bestowed upon the Prophet Ibrahim
(alaihis salam) and his descendants. May Allah be pleased with all of
the Prophetic Companions (Ashab al-Kiram). Indeed, Allah is most
worthy of praise and supreme glorification!
The following is a succinct response to the claims spread by the vehemently anti-
Hanafi proponent known as Abu Alqama Ali Hassan Khan from Pakistan, that
allegedly some later Hanafis made tahreef (distortion) of a Hadith in the Mustadrak al-
Hakim. This latter individual has also spread the claim that some later Hanafis
allegedly tampered with a narration in the Sunan of Abu Dawud. This compiler has
already written and uploaded an internet based counter reply to his false claims on this
which emanated from one of their later writers, known as Sultan Mahmud al-Jalalpuri.
Those who have followed an inkling of Abu Alqama's posts in the past will soon
realize that he is merely an emotively inexperienced non-academic transmitter and
translator from mainly Urdu into English, of the mutterings of some of the Indian
subcontinent pseudo-Salafites of this age. Abu Alqama in his dry and farcical English
has often shown his rancid temper by calling his opponents "Quburi" (grave
worshippers), Dajjals and a whole host of other similar insults. May Allah guide him.
Abu Alqama said on Sun Jul 18, 2004 7:59 am 1 under the thread entitled:
Tahreef of books of hadith by deobandi
- The following claim based on the findings of Dawud Arshad of Pakistan:
Shaykh Arshad showed also a tahreef in Mustadrak Hakim and
Sunan Abu Dawud 2
Tahreef in Hakim
There is a hadith in which Aishah says that when the Prophet
saw prayed three rak'a of witr, he did not sit but at the end
And a deobandi publisher in karachi published it with words " he
did not make salam but at the end"
So the words "he did not sit" where replaced by " He did not do
salam"
And here also, they don't have any nuskhah, it is an error in
publishing, an error that suits hanafi fiqh.
1 At the ahya.org forum
2 This claim regarding Sunan Abu Dawud has been dealt with from this writers pen already in radd to al-
Jalalpuri, Bakr Abu Zayd, Irshad al-Haqq, Zubair Ali Za'i, Abu Khuzaimah, Abu Hibban and Abu Alqama
THE H AN AFI RESPONSE:
The claim mentioned by Abu Alqama from Dawud Arshad is not a novel one, but it
was also spread by the Saudi based writer, Bakr Abu Zayd in his al-Rudud (p. 260),
who merely blindly copied the claim of the Shaykh of the 'Ahl-e-Hadeeth" of India in
his time, Shamsul Haqq al-Azimabadi (d. 1329 AH). The latter discussed this issue
regarding the narration from A'isha (ra) in his notes to the Sunan al-Daraqutni known
as al-Ta'liq al-Mughni which was originally printed in 1310 AH/1892. 3
Bakr Abu Zayd said:
O)
rirfcsl
H^UJl iifj X - ^ e ^ Llo-b- j^J 5">UJI 4_«j j?*j
« • • tf/t-S J H\ JUi H ^^ yji _ j§| _ «JJI Jj^j 01S"»
: JiiLj <, «-ui V» : JiiL <. cLu-bJ! iJugJ 51^1 Jilill iLUJl Ji Sij
. « . . *I^*y» : Jail L$^, ^j
j^pii i^^-U* tti^U (»Jaj<Jl J^l u-*^ *-r^ _«' o^UJl aJ aij
.(TV
Now, Abu Alqama claimed (may be on the authority of Dawud Arshad) that a
Deobandi publisher in Karachi printed the said narration from Aisha (ra) as:
"he did not make salam but at the end"
This is surprising to read, since al-Azimabadi passed away in 1329 AH, so the claim of
Abu Alqama that a Deobandi published it with "Tahreef ' is invalid from chronological
deduction, since Bakr Abu Zayd implied that al-Azimabadi had also made this claim
originally more than 100 years ago!
This was mentioned in an article at: http://almuttaqoon.com/ar/t909.htm
3
Looking now at the originally printed Hyderabad edition of the Mustadrak al-Hakim
(1 /304) with the Talkhis al-Mustadrak of al-Dhahabi printed beneath it we may observe
the following:
' i i 4i J*» * iil <t j o^L^j ^U^ y j;: ■> ^ t \j jli*?^ >! j"l)"_^j V^*.J - -J-,
i>ilj^*,j jUb^^jL^jUt^ ^oi 1 4)1 Jus jil L ^ jj j*J! J- i*<j J^ AT I ^ tj.il fc
u jJCJk^'iK jj
AlJ^iU j- 1 tf *jj*t|1^£ /K l J*W^Ji Jt j jlift^ j LJ" j£U,jS ^ y : tt 4 jL j ->
■ .._■■ ' J J f
^.>
(«)
The above printed copy of al-Mustadrak was finalised in 1335 AH by Da'iratul Ma'arif
in Hyderabad, India; as the editor of that volume dated it as such at the end of the first
volume. This indicates that al-Azimabadi who passed away in 1329 AH did not live to
see this copy of the Mustadrak in print. The following is a scan from al-Azimabadi's
al-Ta'liq al-Mughni on this issue:
Muassasa Risala edition
Jj— j ol5 ; cJli i-UU ^ l »Li* ^ _l*-u» jc. l ^jl jj SjIjj j& t Saba =
\j* C-jtjj i ii_j- ij^i i^Lfj t ^^X'lH ^luM yjJl J_^ ijjjl iJLOAj
■ -^ l^ <-r*^i ^ ^ '4* ' ^ j^' -^.y. y ^' C-t-b- ^f i i±-j_U-i
' o^W' ^y ^r* (>• «J»«U1 "J* i;L^ y 1 1 _ / 4— - v-'l&l jl5 jl «JL»i V»
Jail llj s-ui Vi JiiJ <J o\S U JU- *JS Je- 3 i a^L? j^l J^i, pjj
dLb ^ (JjO^ib ii_; Jii, LJ^\ t UUl ^ J^ij jKj Jai «JU V»
^t t Jailll li* w ^ <^p J^iill J^Vl 0\ aJ o^k ' ij^ilt <-=^Jl
?c_i5 ^f ^ : JUi iJbuj 1!» SkiJ j^j Us U jl : <J c-iii t liji L>_£
JjIjj ^ ij_j_^ — Lj> iliiiSI s-L_jj iljjJl o-i-ftj i. tLjJjJI Ujli IjlSU : c-ii
jyji VI UjjJl .i* 4_j ^LlS' i]L* ^ jjj ^^JL ^i ^ eiijJ.^ Lb
Ju. Ij_jl51_j i j^jll l-U ^L*. ^L-JI lyTjSl : c-lij .Ji* ^1* J iz^Jtfj
• 0>«=rlj *JI lilj *b L'U •.yiy-t ^ V[ JL_i V» : Jail *^_i j^\j.
rtA
Indeed, the printed text of the Mustadrak does say from A'isha (ra) that the Prophet
(sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) would perform 3 (rak'ats) of Witt and he would not make
the Salam except at the end (of the 3 rak'ats). In the footnotes, Hafiz al-Dhahabi
has presented the same narration but with a difference in just one wording, and that is
he did not sit but at the end
If the above printed edition underwent wilful distortion of part of the wording under
the auspices of some Hanafi editors, one may question why did they leave the alternate
version in wording as al-Dhahabi transmitted it in his Talkhis of the Mustadrak?!
Indeed, the likes of Abu Alqama have not done their initial homework in depth to
create a concrete claim that some later Ahnaf did for sure tamper with the wording. If
they had deliberately done so, then what would have prevented them from making
sure that al-Dhahabi's wording should have fitted in with the Mustadrak that they
printed?!
It is not the aim of this article to prove the fiqh of how Witt should be performed and
what are the key proofs used by the Ahnaf, but interspersed within this article there is
a flavour of some of the narrations utilised by the Hanafis.
What we have not seen from Abu Alqama and his Shaykhs is who else from the major
Hanafi and non-Hanafi Muhaddithin had presented the narration from A'isha (ra) with
the wording as found in the printed edition of al-Mustadrak which is typed below:
Mustadrak al Hakim (1/304, Hyderabad edition):
UJ 4 SaSla 1) ' . ma qi .Laa a qi ?"dL^a UJ 4 (_£ jLiuj 4j£*1I UG-" 1 L)-? ^^' j^^J jj! aU^}JA.I La
" JjA jaI <J V] ^Lu V d^i j5j5 4ill JjLj 'jl£ " : °cM 4 ^liSli "<> 4 ? Ua
4Jj.1a]I (JaI e.li.1 AJC-j 4 J ' . ll *-»■*■ Si <jj ^aC. (jjiaj^ajl jj-al jjj IjAj
What is notable is that the above narration is also narrated from al-Hakim by al-
Bayhaqi in his Sunan al-Kubra as follows but the wording is connected to sitting at the
end
Sunan al-Kubra of al-Bayhaqi (3/28):
■Laa a (jj rdU^a UJ 4 (_£jlauj ^J^ 3 ^ U6-" 1 lW J - aA -' J^^J jJl UJI 4 lafl !■»■ » 4ill JUC _ul U^}ja.l
^jc 4 /JJjl (JJ ejl jj (jc- 4 ejus ^jc 4 (Jul uj 4 AjI^i ,ul q* Cy-B^ *-" ' ^ " ' . \;;^ <JJ
,^9 ^1 i Vt q j 2 ^-L^J j5j^ ^iM Jj^J U^ " • < - J ^ ' 4-ijijtc- (jc 4 aUiA <jj ixjuj
pj >luuj <^J^ J^J pLaiA (jj At-ui cliaia ,-i ujjj JSj 4 4jIj^ijI eJA ,J Ij£ 4 " (_jA J^l
iJc-l Aillj 4 -S-luU
Additionally, it is also mentioned in al-Bayhaqi's Ma'rifatus Sunan:
^jj ^gj^j Lujk : Jta 4 <Jj*]I L-ijflkj ^jj (jjuikJI Ljjja.1 : Jta 4 JjfllaJ <lll iJc. _ul Lj^uikl
ejl jj °(jc 4 eJua °^jc 4 JJ.T.U1 u^f^l : (Jla 4 ?.UaC. ^ luIajII jjc- ujjk. : (Jla 4 L-iIUa ^\
jm ^^)]l ^-i al» in V " /ff^Jj^ U^ • '"— "^ ' ^-»JJJLC. (jC 4 iaLuaA ^JJ Jlj* 1 11 (j£ 4 /Jjl (JJ
^jj Juw 1 n (jc. 4 (_>ujJ (JJ /. 1 "JT' J ' frLlac. ^jj luLAjjI jjc »ujj Ij^A 4 " j3_4Jl (j<a (jJJJjVl
t 5Lji (jlij 4 SjuS (jc. 4 AjJj Qi (Jul »ljjj ' uj^' j 8 "'^ U^ J' ^'"''^ a J^J ' ^J^ 1 <c^'
4jjjc ^1 ^1 AjIjj *-Jl)L>j jAj " ^jA j^l (-i V] AstSJ V di^ij ^J^ " H> 5^1 (J_^J U^
J3j l " L_l^)i-a]l e^L^a jLg-Jjl J^J^ ' t - J ^ J U^ J^J " • P J^V J^ 5^J^ L>° ' pj*-"- 4 -
LajSj-a ^jIaC^I (jc ( LaAjJtj ( J^J ^jj 5LUI ^JCj t * ^1 a 11 jj l£JJ^' *'JJ • ^ f'J" 1 "
Someone may now suggest that since al-Bayhaqi transmitted it with the wording '.**£ V
from al-Hakim, then for sure someone must have tampered with the wording from
S^VtO 'fLyV ?!
The issue here is what is the proof that later Hanafis tampered with it? What will
become viewable below is that the above narration from the printed edition of al-
Hakim's Mustadrak with the wording: ^Ly V is not an invention of any later Ahnaf,
but rather the manuscripts of the Mustadrak differ in the precise wording at hand. In
the next few pages, it will be shown from the works of some major Hanafi Hadith
specialists that in their respective times there must have existed manuscripts of the
Mustadrak with the wording ^Ly V, rather than iiij V
What is also viewable above is that al-Bayhaqi did not transmit the following words of
al-Hakim after A'isha's narration:
4Su3jo1\ (JaI e.1^1 AJC-j 1 J ' . II l-*-^ Si Qi ys£. (jjiaj^ojl jj-al j3j I^Aj
Namely, that this is the Witt of Amir al-Mu'min Umar ibn al Khattab and from him
the People of Madina took this. The Hanafis have alternate narrations from Umar (ra)
and other Sahaba to demonstrate their view that after 2 rak'ats one should sit for
Tashhahud, and raise back up for one more rak'ah without taslim after the first
Tashhahud but only in the final sitting. This will be mentioned in due time below.
HANAFI MASTERS WHO TRANSMITTED AL-HAKIM'S
NARRATION AS ^ V RATHER THAN £2* V
The first testification is from the 8 th century Imam, Jamalud-Din al-
Zayla'i (d. 762 AH) in his Nasb al Ra'ya (2/118) who mentioned this narration as
follows (see the underlining carefully):
. ^ jUJl J»>; Jc jy? 4 : J6, < " iljX-U " j f U-l el_,j_, . ^pl < Jjll J-f, tit.
. ( r) p»>T j jl y?i&% jx $&& J j- j oK": cJSj *^j < »W>i^j ' (1-j
: Jlai ijjjJl ^ o^^i J (J—i j-^ ^1 o\ : Cr -»JJ JJ : JlS .(jull >__^ ^tyta
. •CC k=XL_j . ^1 4 j*53l ioU! j (j^jj ijlSo i <U 44»l ^ OlS'
». ^Ll^vJrn j WlU ojs \<i 4 C >UI J; I Jb Jj 4 I ? i^S. .UlTVI 4iUU li . £Od\ .liiT")!! S^l/"
£.1 *Je j 4 >1 «lj 4 ,__J. . UT,. J}] f>LJI Uc *;! Ir'j^'^ J/\ ill j j j J-V : i . 1 y
I^^Uj 4ij> J^ X*-',^» J^aill ^jfi. Ji>,y TiA,^ ".i/^y^Jl^^b" J (1 )
a* 4 jj_^l j; £l»i 4 ji jjlj . £jj ^ ijij . r • I o" 44i)j41_U '• j ^U-l a* 4 ^ji jr ^
: tfjUJI Ji 4 Ui jJ. r ]j 4 <4 ililljd " j IT' l-5fc^l JJ 4 ce lj jj pf, 4 \ V « „. : ^jUI
44>ji < ll£_ r : " j jjjJI Jl»j 4 r £_ - r. y. : j^JI-l* « • IWe j;\jl»yi jucj 4 n £ \-vo y
. *l 4 x.iu* jL»1 4i ^OliiJI 11 j jf-Jlj 4 ^-». jU-ljl_i)l .Ijj : t p . V ,J»
«e tf JJ ' i^lS je ^ jjt jl J; J-- J._> : jli> ii\i, J-Jjll 4 o*>-' J ^1 i-i^ : ^J* (T)
<S) J. JJ"^'<J. ^!j'f\ 4J« " • l*«iW ytj 1 1 j J 1 — ill it 4 4;»_ Jj ;jrlJlcJ."l ,y J*J 4 ^J j t>, JU>.
• UjI»Vj^ 4 44 <« ? j»*'i j 1_. 4 x^^^Oi ^jxyjj*. iJ! if-i'J ' *' *^»»^ " JjJ^' • J ^"-O c **
LjV OS's <tilj ' *i» ' ->ij>. <j'jjjjl"jl J li*i* ' •-i- l » : "!£'*4>^-'-' ' I— '-"jS'ijij -"--j ' -4— yU^l
*«l Jj-j 4jK" : <tilj 4 r ^ - r A, u» : j^JI o:c 4 jll j,_^. : jUJI j. jkllj . »l 4 _,»iJI jJ^ j
iS jbl' ycitilj < b*l 4 4iljU^ll I I j iljjl '-Uj 4 ^»>T j Vl J»»V 4 ojti j." j. J_j U« ill J»r
Jaik \ \"V y» 4. y^ll "Jlf^.l" u» 44 «IaJI >l J liilil ot JS 4 Ijti! J 14 ijJlA\ 11
ir-T u> 44 p^JI >i j f |,ll ^jlj ■ \ £. ATT o« 44 iUI 11 j ^Ij . ^jil ^l)l Ulj 4 j^-JI
Jiill la»j 4 j*j% jV] i_>V : Jii ij^Ji o\ u» 44 iiA\ ^Ijil -s^fc 11 JifJsjl ij^Vj
A—i JlO « \ \ t (J* 44 iljJl »I j JiiU.1 _^j lliUllUfJ 4 44 f jjjl iljJC_ll 11 j J^T-il' J*
Ulj 4 Jjtj J yUl iA.*l 44 laiL *Z X V 4 iijinJl j» 4 Jj^. Jl_J» jS'U l!tj 4 <iki£ <J 44 4 j.i- . 1 1 ••
'Jv'l'jJJ • fj,- T'V u"'^ "J Jte Ji 4 4<JUiijj^JllijLl.lj 4 Jj»ij»»,» 4 ijlll JiiJ Jc jll iljj
jVi jj Vj .4 u»l ii ,» j* n ytii j_, 44 j^ioi ir.1 1 j* " sjiai Oi jj '<i>^i4j *.t
: JJj 4 ,1,4.1 44 .alljU— : <i\j x* Jl! {_j lit n : X\ i} jjinv : j till .Ijj 4 ^>T
. kjpdjll j* <s\j f Je Jc U)_l <IVj <j
The editor of Nasb al Ra'ya has mentioned the difference in the manuscripts of the
Mustadrak and has also mentioned some of the Hanafi Ulama who transmitted the
narration with the wording: j»Xuu V
The second testification is from 3 works of the 9 th century Hanafi
Muhaddith, Imam Badrud-Din al Ayni (d. 855 AH)
i) In his al-Binaya fi Sharh al Hidaya (2/575) he mentioned it with ^Lu V ::-
♦ ^ Jjt J^lU^
^1, Jt, »^~ g* ** > 4*i 5*j H* """ ** *■■*» N * J ^ d1
^(jtiJ^ Jj* ^* jJjJI JVV *l J«j . Lij^l ^ *f* f L-JUtf 4 iUl*
LUJI ^ «tr- w*i jJj ^Jlijll Jlij - ^-11 it ^~> ^k I »r J1 * t * tt>l J
l^j iil yji ^jjUi JUj . >J-> ^j j*- 11 d * v 1 W^ u^ ;j -U A *
jlj U* j ;^ J.y5 *r j j j ' J^ <**-! *^1 j ^* «# iM» V ^^ *
jolil^jj-* of -jl^-i ^1 J-- cr 1 J u j * f j**t ** *yj c*- 1 ^ jl J
cuf j^^i ^T ( ^*. ^ air f *Ji u* 4it w* *' v^j »* *jj * )
j^j ^ V* i! *>; ^a* ^ 4 v 1 ^ 1 * JJ u ' **"* ^ «H V
— '■ ,o*^ T J v l
•V*
ii) The same was mentioned in his commentary to the Sunan of Abu Dawud al-Sijistani
(5/330)
i ,jAj>J <J ^1 J— j N -ii^ii _pji - f^-Jl Up - <u>l Jj-j ol*»
Lji^j . al>-j>«j *Jj l J — ij ( ^jLitJl J»^Ji (J 1p ^v ■ol : JLij
it)L" JJJt Jij * : - p*>LJt Up - 4)1 Jj—j JU : JU i *y^~» ^1
^yJ.1 ;^ » : - ^tiLJl Up - &\ Jj^j [ Jli ] : JU t ^ ^
(. (ji^jJl JpjJt Up X — Ii IJLaj * JJUl a^L^» Ijyjti t jU^Jl StA-* jjj
-rr>-
iii) Finally, he also mentioned it with the same wording in his commentary to Sahih al-
Bukhari known as Umdatul Qari (7/3):
10
The third testification is from the 9 th century Imam and Faqih of the
Hanafis in his time, Shaykh Kamalud-Din ibn al Humam (d. 861 AH)
In his Fath al Qadir (Sharh on al-Hidaya of al-Marghinani), Ibn al Humam mentioned
it with the wording - ^Lu ^ '"
d\ } I^Ip 4JU1 [g&j £dJlp Oj3 UJ ( *Q1j j$4J J-^i ^ p^fi *-^ ,A^ )
(355/2)
l^p U^^p> JLp JlSj *f £»Ji c£jj ( ^ ^ fff^j £&£ ^jj UJ *)j3 )
JLloj 4J& 4JUl Jl^ _J) j\T } cJlS I^p jvCJl cSjj ^j t { ^jT t
** •*• ~* ^
y 55 / / S Q / s S s s / y
juSob Zj\d\ Ji Jp^j OlTj <&? **&> j-** <^ J^ jtjSl j* cj**^^ Jt
s s s s
11
The fourth testification is from the 9 th century Hanafi Hafiz of
Hadith, Imam Qasim ibn Qutlubugha (d. 879 AH), who mentioned it
from al-Hakim in his al-Ta'rif wal Ikhbar bi-Takhrij ahadith al Ikhtiyar 5 as follows:
( WA }
. ->>— Cr* 1 UJU U * CrW (-Us "* i_,J-"- J,i: ^ lj ^J ^^ ,jr*J '■ **$> [ T > V )
Or* 1
Li"
- J^-A
„■_. J — if o ^ ■ lj *^*" uf ' J ^J - ts'jj 1 -- - 4* Ub-3 ^yJai, t jJ I J Uj . *1,j». l j.UJ1
. o ■ . f \ : cj 'Wj ' 1T/T: o^^-SJ^ ' -^^
• 1 A/T = c^- 1 ^ 1
. eo / 1 : j 1 ^- ^' ( T 1 V )
. ^J I fc, — ; j ( a Y r )
• ( YY A ) i-V V e t / V
- Ttr/T
(vi o >>^ j^Jt^j- r - i/ i i *^^ — t/-*— *> r u,il 1 ^ , * jji '^ 6 j Inn )
•Jf.
The edition used here is from a PhD thesis edited by Muhammad Almas Ya'qubi with the approval of
Umm al-Qurra University (1410 AH/1990 CE). No accusations of tampering was mentioned by the editor
with regard to the narration in the Mustadrak
12
t TVS )
jy~^ : Jlij »1 u .iJI fJUjV^^^jj ^ ,Jt. fc UI J l**UIJ^. J IS' : eJU
Is^kUj aj~ J j i ^j.Lc ^1 1^ j». ' j=jJ1 ^ 1>r ^5 > jl ^j _L^, ^ J_j j^Jt *JJI ^jirf.
iJJ
. It)
f V 1
( "O ( a )
4 V t/ Uj
1 Ly L I ■ ■ - f J - J • jit *U 1 i jJ>j •■< li- Jfc ,-f. . Jt L LjJ^ ^ J L». 1 <L>j ; liJj , * *1~)
, ( Y }
jjl — .JaJI La^ .Ijyj .li^^l^^. JLJJ' fLj^J T T o IX • C^ ] (1)
.L*^IJlij ^Ibj juJI Jjbi j iO j*t ji} I J-fc : JIj *J Ijl^p Jj . **a jJI jplj
The fifth testification is from the 10 th century Hanafi faqih, Mulla Ali
al-Qari (d. 1014 AH)
In his Sharh on Mishkat al-Masabih, known as Mirqat al-Mafatih (2/202) he quoted
from Imam Ibn al Humam as follows:
jjjJl ^^tTj J jJLo ^ ^i Olf cJlS L^p ^'L-Jl ^jj liTj j^y-T J
A similar quote is found in Imam Ali al-Qari's Sharh on the Musnad Abu Hanifa (p.
511):
4--i (if jjl cauao J yjji j^Tj J *i^o *i! JLij aJs- <djl ^jU* (^Jl OlS* :cJl3 <.Uup ^'L-Jl t5jj
jj JLjuj jP cflJL-H ^jbJaJl <^jjj {JL?-1 <dJl jA Ji} j (.{OjjilSOl Lgjf b Ji} j (.{^^1 dbj ^1
13
The sixth testification is from the 12 th century Hanafi Hafiz of
Hadith, Imam Muhammad Murtada al-Zabidi (d. 1205 AH)
He mentioned al-Hakim's narration in his Uqud al-Jawahir al-Munifa fi Adilla
Madhhab al Imam Abi Hanifa (p. 81) as follows:
<■£■ *
{ ^\Sj *$& Jj X jl J* JU1 *t! jL, )
These are 6 major Imams from the Hanafi School who are all respected for being adil
(upright) and dabit (precise) in what they transmitted, and no one accused them of any
form of wilful tahreef of al-Hakim's narration.
The seventh testification is from the 13 th century Hanafi Shaykh of
India, Allama Abdal Hayy al-Laknawi
In the days of Shamsul Haqq al-Azimabadi there lived a formidable Hanafi scholar
known as Shaykh Abdal Hayy al-Laknawi (d. 1304 AH). He too has quoted al-
Hakim's narration in his Ta'liq al-Mumajjad 6 (1/520) which is a commentary to the
Muwatta of Imam Muhammad al-Shaybani. Shaykh Abdal Hayy said as follows:
6 Acknowledgements go to the South African Shaykh, Husain Kadodia for informing me about this, and for sending
the scan from Shaykh Laknawi's work
14
-5 : L^SU j* , Jl^3\ a_^^I LJ t ^Jl . . . , ^yj; : aJjJ ( £ )
. f 1 / \ Ju*« *>J-j*-l ( \ )
OY-
To close this section we will quote one non-Hanafi Muhaddith of his time who did
also mention al-Hakim's narration in both formats without accusing any Hanafi of
wilful tahreef
Al-Hafiz Ibn Hajar al Asqalani al-Shafi'i (d. 852 AH) mentioned it in his al-
Diraya fi Takhrij ahadith al-Hidaya 7 (p. 190) as follows:
^Jufi «iiii Jj-ij dJiT *TU-i *%~> j4~> J-a& *i i yu uJ"Ai< jJjj Ci\S" JLij -uU *iii ^J-e (*Ji <I)t 2L*JIp i^Jb- 242
jAj^T J ^1 j^L^j *i il*"5^ jJjj JUj <uU 4)1
Ibn Hajar also knew of the alternate version from the Mustadrak in his Talkhis al-
Habir:
a a
S o ^- Jl o s SS s s /toss o
. jAj^-T jj iJl jjuiij iJ jti'U-l JaiJj j^lj J^"i ^ £>U& ji# ^^ **"*^"' ^J &JIP AjIjj j* iTlkJlj
Assuming that al-Hakim transmitted the wording from A'isha (ra) as "He did not sit
but at the end" and as al-Hakim claimed after mentioning A'isha's narration that:
AJJ-Lal! (JaI e.ii.1 <JC-j i ] t . 11 H^ \\ £ji jaC qxlajA] jj-qI jjj IJAj
Namely, that this is the Witt of Amir al-Mu'min Umar ibn al Khattab and from him
the People of Madina took this. It has been said earlier that the Hanafis have alternate
7 This is a follow up work to Hafiz al-Zayla'i's Nasb al-Ra'ya, and al-Hafiz Ibn Hajar did not take liberty to mention
that what al-Zayla'i quoted from al-Hakim was some form of tampered version of A'isha's (ra) narration
15
narrations from Umar (ra) and other Sahaba to demonstrate their view that after 2
rak'ats one should sit for Tashhahud, and raise back up for one more rak'ah without
taslim after the first Tashhahud but only in the final sitting just like Salatul Maghrib.
What indicates that al-Hakim's claim that Umar (ra) and the People of Madina did not
sit except at the end of 3 Rak'ats to be a weak statement, is the following authentic
narration from Imam al-Tahawi's Sharh Ma'ani al Athar (1/293, no. 1742):
(jc. , jj^ac (-j^ikl : (Jla , 4-iAj (jjl lil (Jla , ,, i»a II (jLuLii (jj c&J^J '' ' • U^ ' JjlJ isi' Or ^w^
& ' ' , , ' " ' ' ' - ,? s '- ' ' ', , ' ' , f
, Jjj\ aJ j-jj jx£. (Jlaa , \IA j£j ul liaj : jla , A-o^k-a /u jj\ u«il jc. ^JjliuJi jJ jc. , J^Ia .jjl (jjI
(jAj^.1 ,-i uj aIulj °J , cliUi£j clDlli lij ^ L *->q , oeljj liaaj-^aj alias
Ibn Abi Dawud — Yayha ibn Sulayman al-Ju'fi — Ibn Wahb — Amr — Ibn Abi Hilal
— Ibn al Sabbaq — al-Miswar ibn Makhrama (ra) said that they buried Abu Bakr (ra)
at night. Umar (ra) said: 'I have not prayed Witr as yet' He then stood up and we
formed lines behind him. He led us in prayer with three rak'ats and did not give the
Salam until the last (rak'ah).
The above narration from the Sahabi, al-Miswar ibn Makhrama shows that Umar (ra)
lead with three rak'ats of Witr 8 and he did not give the Salam until the last Tashhahud.
SANAD ANALYSIS FOR THE LAST NARRATION:
Imam al-Tahawi is a trustworthy Hafiz who narrated from his Shaykh, Ibn Abi
Dawud. The latter is known as Ibrahim ibn Abi Dawud and al-Dhahabi mentioned
him as a Hafiz of Hadith in his Siyar a'lam (13/393) with praise from Ibn Yunus as
follows:
igb v_svjI i>j /xj^Ijj| ijjb*_jujj £jl <:>£J*joJI da9bdl </>lo\JI <£u_»JaJI * 1 _sv-juoJ>JI - 189
.(1) cLo^jO^OjO /j\J yaJ (jjJiJ*JLflj < >_sv-jijjJ>J I .jJjJjoJI iSj$ .<o 1 1 n_svJoLjaJI i^SJuujVI ijl.} (jj uLouJLuj
< ^JlC-^\ QjO UD3 ./y£iSUJO$ n_SvjLmJLaJI _>£-juuUO \j\$ i/XJjjO v_Syl (JJ Ju£-uU3 i,jajyl v_Syl (JJ /3il ! gjOouJ
t\S$jy}\ i-O-uugj qj Jutxj*jo :<^JlC iS$j ICjJs .CuJlsJI °+£$\ QjO 0IS3 iPJ^Ii :Lo3J> jjI Jls ./jJUJI
\\jjjj$j qj -VjS-uj 3jI Jl9 .clcLcxj>3 isSJuljujJI ^jjjjI^aJI 3JI3 i/x^>\)l (jojLsJI 3J3 is^bsJaJI jAsi^r 3JI3
_>^LuJLC Qj\ JlS .QJJLL03 1 Jj^jljuJ <3JljuJ iuLs-uU v_S^9 j-^JjOJ v_S^3J .oLj\J| Qji3^toJI JolfiJfcJI -L>l 3A
JUlC ,JJ JU_>J3 iv_sJbb>3JI iJSf-^S ■ v.SVJLlj^JuJ I cJJIAjlC ,JJ jlSL/3 l^ljjfcjl JJ il3j3 <_>£-juJUO Ul g/XjuU l(2)
.6-X-C l _SU3ouU3 l<\jj
Ibn Abi Dawud narrated from Yahya ibn Sulayman al-Ju'fi who was declared to be
Saduq (truthful) with some mistakes by Ibn Hajar in al-Taqrib al-Tahdhib as follows:
8 One may also consult the Musannaf of Abdar Razzaq (no. 4636) and Sharh Ma'ani al-Athar of al-Tahawi (1/294,
no. 1747) for a narration from Anas ibn Malik (ra) performing 3 rak'ats of Witr with the salam at the last Tashhahud
alone
16
CJ £- (ji£/ljj (jLaJ jl >LAui <ioi CllLa a^ilxll
Yahya narrated from Ibn Wahb. Ibn Wahb is Abdullah ibn Wahb and Ibn Hajar
declared him to be a jurisprudent who was a Trustworthy Hafiz and Abid in al-Taqrib
as follows:
Ajtjoilall (j-a aAo iiaUi. Aijj Aaaall t_gj.,-i.<\\l Ju^-a _&jI ^aV j-« ( _ s J^jall aiuus (jj 4-sAj <JJ ^1 -ijc [ 3694 ]
p AJjoi (jjaJUiij (JUJJI Ajj (jjajaijj AJUJ AJjoi CllLa
Ibn Wahb narrated from Amr who is known as Amr ibn al Harith al-Ansari. The later
did narrate from Ibn Abi Hilal who is commonly known as Sa'eed ibn Abi Hilal (see
Tahdhib al-Tahdhib of Ibn Hajar, 8/8, no. 22). Ibn Hajar graded Amr as being a
Trustworthy jurisprudent and Hafiz in al-Taqrib as follows:
4jo1 uJI Qjt JaaUi. 4j£a AiS C_JjJ jJ (Jj^aW ;sAV J* <_£ jL^aiVI L-lj&u (jj tlljLaJI (jj JJ-aC- [ 5004 ]
Amr's Shaykh was Ibn Abi Hilal and he is Sa'eed ibn Abi Hilal whose narrations are
found in Sahih al-Bukhari and Sahih Muslim also. Ibn Hajar mentioned the following
about Ibn Abi Hilal in al-Taqrib:
1 uU Jj ^jj Qi JlSj J*-aVl ^^-a Jj3 i^Jj^oA o!>UJI jj ^aV^o (JuM JMa ^J jj JUxjo, [ 241 ]
C- <loiJ (jjiiifl-yll (JjS (_S^J W^ <-5^J 0^-^' "^4
Ibn Abi Hilal is generally Saduq (truthful) and he narrated from Ibn al-Sabbaq who is
commonly known as Ubayd ibn al Sabbaq who was declared to be Thiqa (trustworthy)
by Ibn Hajar in al Taqrib as follows:
C- Aalllill (jx 4AJ Mini _ajl (jiiill (i-J-iAjl Siiiuo oJl^._a-aj A Ufl a\ (JUjoJI (JJ Jluc [ 4373 ]
Ibn al-Sabbaq narrated from the Sahabi, al-Miswar (ra) and Ibn Hajar mentioned the
latter to be a Sahabi in his al-Taqrib as follows:
4 1 (j-a^.j__ll -iJC. _aJ ,_£^)A j\ll aj& j (jj i—slio Juc. (jj (, uAl (JJ (J3_jJ (JJ 4-oj^-a (JJ Jj)>n«all [ 6672 ]
p (jiLaij AJjl Alui lllLo 4 Ja i ^ 4_1J^J
17
Imam al-Tahawi also mentioned the position of the Ulama of Madina in line with the
Hanafi view in his Sharh Ma'ani al Athar:
^gljVI j\ jj JJ .ilia, li&a. : Jli ( £_£.}| jaII jl?^ •^ Ck ^ r^-" ll£ ^ a a *lj»ll jJ Lii^a.
AnC-j , .Ijj jj 4A.jLkj , jLaA.jll .liC jj ^pj /jJlj , l<aaua jj ainlq.lj , jjijjll jj oj^-j
Lajjj (JLia3j ?-!iLk^aj <a3 JAI aAljjoi 4i-LuLa ,_9 , jUjJ jj jLajluj , <Ul .IjC. jj Alll
AJu tail eJA ^gJc. '-g'"*- ' " *J r - J l-a-a jl^3 • M J /*^T' *-*^ j pA jj£I (Jj^J iali p i J5w ^ IjiliaJ
jl ljx-ak.1 °J3 l^jLaltj <JJl£a]I f Ig-SS °j-a lj°j£j °j-a lj^3 jA j^.1 ^gi U] aIIuJ V el^/li JJjll (jl
lillj j£jj jJj , JJJ*-1I r^- lW J-aC ^^ ^Ic- f 3 V^"'J > l)* J^l ^ 11] aIuij V <-1l>Ij JJjll
4i<j /Jjl el Jj , ?JJ*J <^ a '- a > ^*- UJ J^J ji° U^ ^° ' . 'J-"^" jJ \it iii aJC J3j aAljjoi J^a
ja La jJjil /-9 aLiA 'LijIj (_5jA JJl 4jc- lSJJ -^J i ' » " , .! 1 t^il^J J^_>" tlW "J^" cs^ "^J
cil^a "j^a <J OgJi °J3 Lai <Sl>L> ^giAJJ V La-a LjOJC. Idgi . t_ jUII I JA ^J <S LujIjj ' - 1 a^Sj
. aAjXJU AJJC. (_3iLJl aJ 6-lxJ j-a aA jj£| (jljaij , 4-jLaI al jka aJ 5UJI (JjjJJ
Additionally, Imam Badrud-Din al-Ayni has also mentioned in his Umdatul Qari (7/3-
4) something of a similar nature on three rak'ats of Witt with the taslim at the end of
the Salah as follows:
4'jfi 7:^ c^j^l «*UP
JLPj aJJ *-»j^j ijbwaJI ja APLSr- c-Jfci ^^j^ 1 J^J ^J^ 1 J-*J A*~Jl f-l^SiJtj jJj*il »*-P JJ j^Pj
OlT <UP J,l*J 4il1 ^j ,JIp jP dJjU-l C^JL?" J« ^*J La ^ 1 "^J J*^ J ^i ff^-i ^J ^ ^ J* J^J
d*5\i Jjj ill Jj-tlj
18
A FURTHER LOOK AT AL-HAKIM'S
NARRATION IN THE MUSTADRAK
Assuming that the correct variant from the manuscripts of al-Hakim's Mustadrak
should have been in line with what al-Bayhaqi narrated in his Sunan as follows:
■Laa a <jj ^dL^a UJ i (_jjLi-lj 4jjia]l cfe-" 1 Oi -i-a^l j-ai jj! UJI i Lag !"•»■» <lll Jut jjI U^iaJ
" uAj^y
One may notice that the narrator who took from Qatada in the above sanad was Aban
who is Aban ibn Yazid al-Attar. He is the only one who narrated it with the wording:
"The TrqpHet (saCCaCCafiu aCaihi wa saCCam) performed 3 rak'ats of ^Witr
and fie did not sit But at the end (of the SaCafi)."
Ibn Hajar mentioned the following point under Aban in al-Taqrib:
ill J a £ (j/unll Jjii. ^ LJla 4juLJ ^ jl jil A} Aii Jj Jy jjl ic j*-ajll jUaaJI ij Jy ^jj jU [ 1 43 ]
Namely, Aban was trustworthy but he had some narrations that he transmitted alone
with no other narrators relating similarly to himself on some occasions.
Imam Muhammad ibn Hasan al-Shaybani has a chapter heading in his Muwatta as:
"Chapter on saying as-salamu alaikum in Witr." Meaning the final salutation after 3
rak'ats.
The first narration (no. 258) he mentioned was as follows:
Malik informed us: Nafi informed is that Ibn Umar would say as-salamu alaikum in
Witr between the two Rak'ats and the one rak'ah, so that he could give the order for
something he needed."
Muhammad (al-Shaybani) said: "We do not adhere to this; rather we adhere to the
verdict of Abdullah ibn Mas'ud and Ibn Abbas, may Allah be pleased with them, and
we do not think that as-salamu alaikum should be said between them."
19
Now, after narrating some reports going back to Umar (ra), Ibn Mas'ud and Ibn Abbas
(ra), the final narration that Imam al-Shaybani presented in his Muwatta (no. 266) was
the following one from A'isha (ra):
Muhammad said: "Sa'eed ibn Abi Aruba informed us from Qatada from Zurara ibn
Abi Awfa from Sa'eed ibn Hisham from A'isha (ra) that the Messenger of Allah
(sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) would not say the Salam after 2 rak'ats of Witr."
The above narration has a similar isnad back to A'isha as in the Mustadrak al-Hakim
and Sunan al-Bayhaqi, except that Sa'eed ibn Abi Aruba was the one who narrated it
from Qatada. Sa'eed was mentioned in summary by Ibn Hajar in al-Taqrib as follows:
J iiS I i±i\ *r-»"< «U M^> 4ijj !_g Jirnul J*>>'ul j±\ 3J0V J-a j_g^)Si\lll (jl^-a '^-tJjC- igf (J? ■■'l)».»i [ 2365 ]
p (jjm^-sj aJjoi (J&j dljoi <iui CllLa 4_uijLuJI qm o^Ua ^ (jAill (Jllijl (jx (jl^j -laliklj (jinlVul
Namely, Sa'eed was a trustworthy Hafiz; though he performed a lot of tadlees and
confused his narrations (in his last days) he was the most established narrator when
reporting from Qatada.
Hence, what Sa'eed narrated from Qatada is the most accurate version of the narration
from A'isha (ra) with the wording being:
"..That the Messenger of Allah (sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) would not say the Salam
after 2 rak'ats of Witr."
Rather than:
"The Prophet (sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) performed 3 rak'ats of Witr and he did not
sit but at the end (of the Salah)."
Additionally, the following narrators also took from Sa'eed ibn Abi Aruba with a list of
the hadith works which has the same narration as quoted above from the Muwatta
Muhammad:
Bishr ibn al Mufaddal as in the Sunan al-Kubra of al-Nasa'i (no. 1701)
Al-Mut'im ibn al Miqdam as in the Musnad al-Shamiyyin of al-Tabarani (no. 917)
Shuja ibn al Walid as in Sharh Ma'ani al Athar of al-Tahawi (no. 1044)
20
Abda as in the Musannaf Ibn Abi Shayba (no. 6912, Awwama edn)
Abdal Wahhab ibn Ata as in Sunan al-Kubra of al Bayhaqi (3/31)
Yazid ibn Zur'ai as in Sunan al-Daraqutni (no. 1649), Salatul Witt of al Marwazi (no.
114) and al-Khatib al-Baghdadi in his Ta'rikh (14: 284)
Besides, al-Hakim 9 has quoted a variant from Isa ibn Yunus from Sa'eed ibn Abi
Aruba back to A'isha (ra):
Mustadrak al Hakim (1/304):
<jj l_iLAjjI ^jc. uj i ' > "1 i- ,ul ^jj /-J2kj uj i (_p*jl (—kuijj Qi L_ija*j ^jj ^j ■ ■■■»■ » u^kl :
Qi iJ&l^)jl UJ I P^j (JJ /gjc- (JJ ,j ■ "•"■ " UJ) ' (3 ° "' (JJ J^J _Jjl UJ.1^.J 4 .llXjuj ujl I frliaC.
' cs^J cW e J' .jj U^ ' " 6 -^^ (jc c 4jj^)& ,_jI ^jj i ^ v> i ii uj c (J-^jJ (JJ /, > 'ijr. uj ' -g-uij-a
Ok (j^rj^ jj'' S^JI ,-i all Uj V 4jjl (JjjjOJ (jl£ " t dllli i 4_uujlc. (jC t aUjA Qi At.i.u ^JC
Meaning that: "The Prophet (sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) would not give salam in the
first two rak'ahs of Witt."
This narration was quoted by al-Hakim just before the narration that Abu Alqama et al
claimed was tampered by some later Ahnaf!
To conclude this section, the narration transmitted by Aban from Qatada is Ghayr
Mahfuz (not preserved accurately) and since his narration opposes that by a number of
other students of Qatada, it stands as being a Shadh (aberrant) narration. The correct
narration is the alternate version mentioned from Imam Muhammad al-Shaybani and
others.
9 And also in the Musnad of Ishaq ibn Rahawayh (no. 1310)
21
CONCLUSION
In closing this short treatise, the likes of Abu Alqama and his Shaykhs like Dawud
Arshad and Bakr Abu Zayd all spread the claim that some later Hanafis allegedly
tampered with A'isha's narration found in the Mustadrak of al-Hakim. By Allah's will
it has been demonstrated by consulting the original works of some 7 Hanafi Ulama
and one Shafi'ite Muhaddith, that they too had known of, and mentioned the narration
from al-Hakim with the very wording that the pseudo-Salafites claimed was
interpolated into A'isha's narration to suit Hanafi fiqh as Abu Alqama claimed, when
he bragged unjusdy:
So the words "he did not sit" where replaced by " He did not do salam"
And here also, they don't have any nuskhah, it is an error in publishing, an error that suits
hanafi fiqh.
Rather, it is one of his vain fancies fuelled by the flames of hatred for the Hanafis! For
those Hanafi scholars well before the days of Darul Ulum Deoband or other sections
of the Hanafis of the Indian subcontinent did know of it by having some form of
access to either a manuscript of the Mustadrak, or by relying on great and trustworthy
scholars who were free from the accusation of willful tahreef of the narration at hand.
If the likes of Abu Alqama are fair and stand for the ultimate truth, it would be in their
interests to acknowledge that the manuscripts of the Mustadrak differ, and no Hanafi
is known by name to have purposefully tampered with the said narration from earlier
times. Alas, the haughty ones are too arrogant to admit their shortcomings, though
their calumny will not escape the judgement of Allah if they fail to make a sincere
Tawba. May Allah guide them and us. Amin.
Peace and Blessings on the Prophet Muhammad, his Family, and all his Companions.
Abul Hasan
London
January 1 st 2008/22 nd Dhul Hijjah 1428 AH
22